JANUARY 2009

K
PRINT & TEACH LESSON

OCTOBER 2010

DEATH OF OFFICE JOKE

Language Function:

discussing issues; reading comprehension

Vocabulary/Topic:

political correctness; office work; human resources; humour;

expressions with COME; collocations with LAW

advanced
upper-intermediate
intermediate
pre-intermediate

focus on talking
Activity 1. Discuss these questions in pairs or small groups.
1. Do you believe that fun and humour in the workplace improves or worsens work quality? Why?
2. Have you ever played an office prank on a coworker? How did it turn out? Has anyone in you workplace
played a prank on you?

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focus on reading
Activity 2. Read the information about Equality Act and decide whether you would support a similar legislation in
your country. Back up your position with arguments.

Equality Act heralds

a new era of political
correctness in the UK

Despite serious concerns about their impact on

business, the jobs market and office life, new equality
laws came into effect on 1 October 2010.
Here are some consequences of the new draconian
regulations that will change your workplace.

Under the new law:

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Staff could sue for almost any perceived offence they

receive in the workplace

Vegan, teetotallers and atheists are given the same

protection against discrimination as religious groups

Workers will be able to sue over jokes and banter they

find offensive - even if the comments are aimed at
someone else, and they werent at the time the
comments were made

Employees can sue if they feel the comments violate

their dignity or create an intimidating, hostile,
degrading, humiliating or offensive environment

Firms could be sued if a member of staff makes an

unwise or politically incorrect joke to a colleague,
which neither of them finds offensive, but is relayed to
another employee who does claim to be upset.

Employers have a responsibility to shield their staff,

where possible, from abuse by customers and
contractors; workers will be able to sue their employer
if a customer or contractor says something they find
offensive

Men and women will be allowed to discuss and

compare their salaries

Employers are banned from asking job applicants

about their health

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DEATH OF OFFICE JOKE

Activity 3. Read the text on page 2 again and decide whether these statements are true (T) or false (F).
1.

Equality Act protects employers from being sued by workers.

2.

Employees will be able to sue only over jokes aimed at other people.

3.

Employers have a responsibility to protect their staff from abuse by customers and contractors.

4.

Employees will be forced to reveal their salaries.

focus on talking
Activity 4. Discuss these questions in pairs or small groups.
1.

How would Equality Act influence business, the job markets and office life?

2.

Read the extract from Kate Foxs book Watching the English. Would the British attitude to
humour help or hinder the introduction of the new law?

In other cultures, there is a time and a place for

humour; it is a special, separate kind of talk. In
English conversation, there is always an undercurrent
of humour. We can barely manage to say hello or
comment on the weather without somehow contriving
to make a bit of a joke out of it, and most English
conversations will involve at least some degree of
banter, teasing, irony, understatement, humorous selfdeprecation, mockery or just silliness. Humour is our
default mode, if you like: we do not have to switch
it on deliberately, and we cannot switch it off. For the
English, the rules of humour are the cultural
equivalent of natural laws - we obey them
automatically, rather in the way that we obey the law
of gravity.
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DEATH OF OFFICE JOKE

focus on vocabulary: EXPRESSIONS WITH COME

New equality laws came into effect on 1 October 2010.
to come into effect - to begin to apply, to officially start to be used
Activity 5. Complete the sentences with these words.

blows

end

head

life

light

mind

nothing

rescue

senses

standstill

surprise

terms

1. The children almost came to .......................... over the inheritance.

2. In the early eighties racial tensions came to a .......................... and exploded in
Britains inner cities and housing estates.
3. The story came to .......................... earlier this week when the Sunday Times
published an article about the deal.
4. I hope you will come to your .......................... and apologize to your parents.
5. He came to the .......................... of his little sister when she was choking.
6. The city came to a complete ......................... as a result of the bus drivers strike.
7. It came as a ............................... to me that Susan had been fired.
8.It took him months to come to ........................... with
his wifes death.
9.Global climate change talks came to an ........................
today in an atmosphere of distrust and recrimination.
10.If you look at it long enough, this portrait comes
to ............................ .
11.A few people thought theyve seen someone looking
like the missing girl, by in the end the search came
to ........................... .
12.The first thing that comes to .......................... when
you think of Paris is The Eiffel Tower.
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DEATH OF OFFICE JOKE

focus on vocabulary: COLLOCATIONS WITH LAW

Activity 6. Choose the right word to fill the gap.
1. Our company is operating entirely ................. the law.
A. above

B. within

C. under

D. outside

2. As the law ......................., you can get married while still too young to drive a car.
A. stands

B. forbids

C. brings

D. allows

C. below

D. above

3. No-one is ....................... the law.

A. over

B. under

4. Martial law was introduced to prevent the breakdown of law and ........................ .
A. peace

B. police

C. order

D. stability

5. When the police freed the suspect, local people ........................ the law into their own hands.
A. broke

B. took

B. pass

D. brought

focus on vocabulary
Activity 7. Explain the following words from the text on page 2.

herald

...............................................................................................

draconian

...............................................................................................

vegans

...............................................................................................

teetotallers

...............................................................................................

banter

...............................................................................................

degrading

...............................................................................................

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